Electric meter.



No. 863,799. PATENTED AUG. 20, 1907. 0. E. HOLMES,

ELECTRIC METER.

APPLICATION FILED 11017.23, 1904.

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0. E. HOLMES. ELECTRIC METER. APPLIUATI'ON FILED 1 Iov.2s,1904.

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' UNITED STATES PA E T omen CHARLES E. HOLMES, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL ELEOTRIU COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC METER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 20, 1907.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GnAnLEs E HOLMES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex, State of Massachusetts, have invented cer- 5 tain new and useful Improvements in Meters, of which gto electrical measuring instruments of all qlasses.

l5 The primary object of my invention is to reduce the cost of meters of this type, and I accomplish this.

,by constructing and arranging the parts so jthat the meter is of small size and light weight, making many of the parts of sheet-metal punchings} some of 2 them having integral arms bent in proper relation to support other. parts,. by eliminating binding-posts and running the leads direct to the coils of the meter, and by securing many of the parts together without using screws. i t

Another object of my invention is to makethe parts of the, meter readily accessible, and one way which i I have adopted for accomplishing this is th assemble all the parts on a supporting member and detachably securing this member within the casing of the meter. 30

Another object of my invention is to'providean improved means for adjusting the damping effect and with it the speed ofrotation of the moving element of the meter.

These and other objects, together with the details 35 of construction and mode of operation of my improved meter, will be better understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with'the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the preme ber; Fig. 7 is a plan view of the back plate ofthe Fig. 8 is a plan view of the disk armature; Fig. perspective view of the upper bearing; Fig. 10 perspective view of the lower bearing; Fig-l1 is a sectional elevation of the .tube carrying the bearing block; Fig. 12 is a detail of the magnetic circuit; Fig. 13 is -a perspective view of the armature of the dampingj device; and Fig. 14 shows a detail of the casing. efcrriug to the drawings, the meter is inclosed within a casing of drawn metal of circular form consisting of a back and cover. Riveted to the back I are two supporting feet 2 and 3 for mounting the meter on a wall or other support. These feet are made from metal strips bent to the proper shape and riveted to the back 1, the foot 2 being of key-hole form and the foot 3 in the form of a slot opening at the side. By this construction the screws for supporting the meter may be secured in position and the meter afterwards placed thereon. by placing foot 2 over the upper screw, then lowering the meter until the screw is at the top of the opening and then turning the meter on the upper screw as a pivot until the foot 3 is in propbr relation to the lower screw. It will be seen that this construction also permits taking the meter from the wall without removing any screws. At the edge of the back 1 on one side is a tongue 4, and the cover 5 is provided with an eye 5 on that side. Secured to the hack on the opposite side is a stiff flat spring 6 having a button 7 thereon extending through a slot in the heel; l and extended at its upper end to form a tongue 9 which is bent at an angle and is adapted to protrude through an eye in the cover 5. This tongue 8 is provided with a hole through which a sealing wire may be passed to prevent anyone from gaining access to the meter.

All of the operating mechanism of the meter is supported on a central diaphragm or supporting member 9, and. this supporting member is detachably mounted within the casing. The entire operating mechanism can therefore be quickly and readily talien out of the casing so that all parts are perfectly accessible for inspection. or repair, and this may be done without even removing the meter from the wall or other support\ For this purpose the supporting member 9 is provided with three lugs 10, two of which enter receivers or open- 'ings in strips 11 which are riveted to the back 1.. A stiff flat spring 12 turned up slightly at its outer end and provided with a suitable receiver or opening is riveted to the back at the top of the meter. To secure the operating mechanism in position within the casing the two 9 5 Tower lugs 10 on the. supporting member 9 are inserted in the holes in the strips 11 and then a slight downward pressure on the supporting member causes the ripper. lug 10 to engage the spring 12 and force it upward until the lug enters the hole n the spring and the latter then ,sna-ps over it andholds the operating mechanism securely. The cover 5 may then be put on by booking the tongue 4 in the eye on one side of the cover, pressing button 7 and then pressing the cover down over the, rim

ofthe back, whereupon the button. is released and As above described, all the operating parts the me 1 10 ter are secured on a supporting member 9, and this member is preferably a sheetmetal punching. As the motor mechanism is secured on one side of the member 9 and the magnetic retardingdevice on the other side, the member 9 is preferably made of iron or other magnetic material in order to take advantage of its shielding effect against magnetic fields. The punching which forms the member 9 is shown in Fig. ti; its outer edge is turned over at right angles along the line ol the dotted circle, and the portions 10 are bent as indicated by the dotted linestolorm the projecting lugs 10: bove referred to. The member is punched soas to form portions 13, 13 and 14, 14, which may be bent at right angles along the dotted linesto support parts of the meter. The portions 13, 13 are bent backwards as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 and support a part of the meter motor. As is usual in induction meter motors, the magnetic-circuit consists of bundles of laminations of sheet metal on which series and potential coils are wound. One set of lamina 15 are U-shaped and are secured together by brass tubes ltl as shown in .Fig. 12, the ends of which are expanded to hold the laminar together. Tubes 16may if desired be insulated with an outer coating of enamel. When properly secured together by the tubes 16, the U- shaped lamina: l5 are mounteibin an inverted position by bolts or screws 17 which are inserted through the tubes 16 and screwed into threaded openings in the ends of the arms 13. By this construction the laminae are held tightly together independently of the screws 17 so that even if the screws become loose there will be no rattling or humming in the meter. Another set of lamina: [8 are secured together in like manner and placed between the legs of the U-shaped set 15 for the purpose of short-circuiting a large part of the magnetic flux imposed by the potential coils leaving but a small part to.

pass through the disk. The air gaps between the two sets .15 and 18 are spaced by metal tubes 24which not only determine their width but insure them against change. Potential coils 1!), .19 are wound on the legs of the U to and connected in series. Opposite the ends of the legs oi the U, as shown in Fig. 4, are mounted a third set. of lamime 20 around which the series coil 21 is wound. the latter consisting of only a few turns of wire of relatively largecross-section. Thedisk armature 22 of the motor is -.i'rraugcd for rotation in the narrow space between thesets ol lamina l5 and 20. A starting plate 23 consisting ol a punching of sheet copper in the form of a double loop as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3, is

mountcd in position with a leg of the U extending through each loop and is horizontally adjustable as shown in dotted lines in Fig. l. The operation of the meter motor as thus constructed will be readily understood by those skilleil in the art.

The shaft 25 of the disk armature is mounted for rotation in bearings secured on the front. of the supporting member 9. To simplify the construction and facilitate adjustment; of the bearings, projections 2t; are struck up from the supporting member 9 as shown in Fig. 6 between which I the. bearings rte held. The upper bearing 27 consists of a punching of sheet. brass; as shown in Fig. 9, having its ends bent at. right angles to the body portion and provided with a key-hole slot.

The lower end portion 28 has an opening therein through which tlnficduc-ed upper end of the shalt. 25

extends. lt will tlius be seen that the upper bearing tween them.

is readily adjustable by merely loosening the one screw which holds it and moving it vertically between the projections it; by means of the upper endportion 29. The support 30 for the lower bearing for shaft 25 is also of sheet metal and slides between projections 26 struck up from the supporting member 9 and abracket 45 secured by rivets to member 9 or formed integral with the member 5) as the arms 13 and 1-1 are; the lower end of the bearing is bent at right angles to facilitate adjustment and a key-hole slot is provided as in the case of the upper bearing. Above the key-bole slot are two projections Ill integral with the body portion and bent at. right angles thereto; the upper projection 31 has an opening therein and the lower one a depression in its upper side. between the two projections Ill a tube 32, shown in Fig. l l. is adapted to be supported by springing the projections apart and slipping the tube in be- Within the tube 2-32 at each end is a jewel bearing block 33, preferably a sapphire. cupped and polished to form a frictionless bearing for shaft 25,

and a coiled spring 34 within the tube tends to keep The lower end the sapphires at the ends of the tube. of shalt 25 is tapered oft and the point extends through the opening in the upper project ion til and rests on the jewel at the top of the tube 32. The shaft being supported on a sapphire step bearing rotates with a mini mum friction, and when one sapphire is worn the tube 32 may l e reversed. When both sapphires 33 are worn the tube may be taken out and replaced. by a new one while the rough sapphires are being repolished. The support 30 is also provided at its upper end with a portion 3] bent at right angles and provided with an opening through which the shaft extends and which therefore prevents lateral displacement of the shaft of'the meter. The disk armature 22 is also a punching of sheet metal having holes 35 therein to prevent creeping and stamped, as shown in Fig. 8, to provide integral arn1s'36 which are bent back on the disk and upwards,

as shown in Figs. 2 and 4, and then screwed together on either side of shaft 25 to hold the disk in proper position on the shaft.

The means for retarding the rotation of the moving element of the meter consists of a single-C-shaped magnet 40 mounted horizontally in front of the supporting plate and: above the disk armature, as shown in Fig.

1 The air gap of the magmt is in the lower side. The

magnet. is supported by a sheet-metal punching 41 held by screws 42 on the member 9 and provided with outwardly extending integral arms formed to grip the magnet. Bclowthe rotatable disk armature 22 is an armature 43 for the magnet 40. and the means for adjusting the speed ot-the'meter consists in adjusting this armature towa'rd and'away from the disk=22 to vary the air gap between the'poles of the magnet 40 and its armature -13. Armature 43 is carried by an angle piece 44. as shown in Fig. 13. secured to and pivoted on bracket 45 by a screw 16. A spring washer isjplaccd under the head of screw "it; and a screw so which holds washer 47 to the angle piece so that when the screws are loosened there still remains some pressure against the angle piece preventing its dropping ontpf place and so destroyingis lormer adjustment. Below the openings for the-screws l6 and tti the-angle piece is provided with a 'vertic-.ll slot and a rivet 48 -in vb rac ket 45 having an eccentric head ll), as shown in -Fig. ,.13, fits snugly bebent forward on the dotted linesin Fig. 6 and turned over horizontally at the ends to support a dial by which the revolutions of the moving element of the meter are- The back'plate 50 of registered, as shown in Fig. 3. this dial is a punching of sheet brass, as shown in'Fig.

7, having integral arms 51 which are bent forward to support the front plate of the dial, integral arms 52 which are bent back to support the shafts by which the dial train is geared to the meter shaityand integral arms 38, by which the dial is secured to the arms 14. The arms 52 support a shaft 53 carrying a worm wheel 54 which meshes with a worm on the shaft 25. These arms may readily be sprung apart far enough to slip shaft 53 into its bearings. A worm 39 is forined on shaft 53 and meshes with a worm wheel on thedrivc shaft 55 of the dial train which also has a bearing in onc oi the arms 52. The arms 51 have projections 56 struck up on their outer ends and the front plate 57 of the dial is provided with suitable openings corresponding to the armsfil In assembling the dial, the front plate is pressed down over the endsof the arms 51 which are pressed back until the projections 56 snap' over the front of the plate 57. screws, are-'used in securing the parts of the dial together. The dial face is preferably cut on the front of the f 'ont plate. In the cover 5 is'an opening over the dial face provided with a glass.

. he leads 58 from the series coil 21 are brought u around member 9 and extend out ol the casing direct through corresponding recesses at the junction of the back 1 and cover 5, no binding-posts for the leads being used. The insulation of the leads 58 is reinforced about the points where they pass out of the casing and the openings in the casing are so small that their sides become embedded in the thick insulation thus securely anchoring the leads to prevent them from being pushed into or pulled out of the casing and disturbing the proper operation of the meter. One of the leads 59 to the potential coils 19 is electrically connected to one of the series loads 58 within the meter and the other 60 extends through a third opening in the casing for connection to the other side of the circuil, this lead being anchored in the casing as were the series leads 58. For further protection against straining, the leads 59 and 60 may be carried through one or more openings in the member 9 as shown in Fig. 4. As an additional precaution, a guard 61 may be provided within the casing directly opposite the openings for the leads to prevent sticking a needle or the like th 'ough one of the openings and against the dish armature 22. The guard 61 is shaped as shown in Fig. 5, and when in position the sl ts fit over the two lower lugs 10 between the strips 11 and member 9 as shown in Fig. 2.

. I have described the features of my invention herein as applied to an integrating .irniluction nlolor motor, but I Wish it understood that mostof the features of myinvention are equally applicable to commulating motor meters and some of them are applicable to measuring instruments generally.

The construction illustrated and described may be It will thus be seen that no.

modified without departing from the spirit of my invention and I aim to cover all suelrmmlifications in the claims appended hereto.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentof the United States is,

1. An electric meter having :1 casing. an operating mechanism, menus for (lelnclmbly supporting the entire operal'inn mechanism within the casing, and a yielding member which when depressed permits oi removing the entire opcrating mechanism from the casing.

2. An electric meter having" u cusing' a supporting member. operating mechanism supported entirely upon said member. means for detachably supporting said member within the casing, and a spring which wluru depressed pcrmits of removing the entil'cope'ruring mechanism from the cusing';

her. operating mechanism supported entirely upon said member, supports secured within the casing. and cooperatlng lugv'uud receivers on the supports and member one 3. An electricmeter having a casing. a supporting memof which is flexibly mounted whereby the operating mecb :rnisnr is detachably supported within the casing.

-l. An electric motor having-a casing. supports secured therein one of which is flexibly mounted. a Supporting member formed from a sbechmetnl punching on which the entire operating mechanism oftlie meter is'supported, and.

portioiis integral with sold member bent to form lugs cooperating with openings in said supports whereby the op orutl In an electric meter-,n a: in which the operating mechanism is contained, consistingof a buck and cover. a rigidly supporte'ltongue and on eye on the buck and cover on one side, a spring-positinned tongue and on eye on the buck and cover on the other side, and menus for moving I the spriug-positinned tongue from outside the casing, suul tongue having on opening therein torn seal 'wire.

6. An electric meter having a casing comprising two parts which [it together, a coil within said casing, and insulated lends extending through openings in said casing at the.

junction of said two parts. said openings being shaped to clamp the insulation of said leads firmly when the two mechanism isdelaclmbly supported within the its parts are fitted together and to permit the tree removal of i 'said lends when said parts are separated. 7. An electric motor lmving a casing, cells carrying the current to be measured within the casing, leads from the coils running direct through openings in the casing, and means preventing slipping of the leads in said openings.

8. An electric meter having a casing consisting of two parts which lit together. coils within the casing, leads from the coils running direct through openings in the easingformed by corresponding depressions in the two parts of the casing, and means to prevent slipping of the leads in said openings. 7

J. An electric. meter having a casing, coils within the c ug', leads from the coils running direct through open in; in the casing, and insulation on the leads in which the sides of the openings are embedded to hold the leads firmly.

to. An electric meter having :1 casing, coils carrying the current to be measured within the casing,'leads from the coils running direct through openings in the casing, and a guard within the casing directly opposite said openings.

11.. An electric meter comprising a supporting member cons-t, in; oi an iron punching having integral arms stamped out and bent to both sides of the punching, elec' tric motor mechanism secured to said arms on one side of sold punching, and a permanent magnet to retard the moving element 01' the motor secured to other of said arms on the other side of said punching.

12. In on electric meter having an electric motor driven by the current to be measured and a dial for registering the rotations of the moving element of the motor, a supporting member formed from a sheet-metal punching and having integral arms bent to support the dial and a portion of the motor mechanism.

18. In an electric measuring instrument, a shaft, bearings therefor, a disk of conducting material carried by the shaft, a magnet mounted on one side of the disk. :1 piv oted armature therefor mounted opposite the poles of the magnet on the other side of the disk, and means for mov ing the armature on its pivot toward and away from the disk to vary the air gap between the magnet and its arma ture.

1-1. In an electric measuring instrument, a shaft, bearings therefor, a disk of conducting material carried by the shaft, a magnet mounted on one side of the disk. :1 pivoted armature therefor mounted opposite the poles of the magnet on the other side of the disk aml having an opening therein, and a rotatable member having an eccentric movement within said openin".

In an electric measuring instrument, a shaft, bearings therefor, a disk of conducting material carried by the shaft, a magnet mounted on one side of the disk, an arma ture therefor mounted opposite the poles of the magnet on the other side of the disk, a screw securing the armature to a support, means to prevent movement of the arm-a ture when the screw is loosened. an opening in the armature, and a rotatable member having an eccentric head within said opening.

16. In an electric measuring instrument, a rotatable shaft and a sheet-metal plate having integral arms formed from portions of the plate and bent to provide means for securing the plate to the shaft.

17. In an electric measuring instrument for alternating currents, a bundle of laminae, a metallic tube extending through openings in the lamina: and turned over at its ends to secure them tirmly together, and means for securing the laminae in position consisting of. a bolt p: .sing through the tube. I I

18. An electric meter comprising a shaft, bearings there for, an electric motor whose armature is carried by the shaft, means for retarding the rotation of the shaft comprising a permanent magnet mounted in proximity to a member of conducting material carried by the shaft, and means for registering the rotations of the shaft. comprising a dial having front and back [)iilllSyillld a dial train mounted between them and geared to the shaft, said back plate being formed from a sheet-metal punching having integral arms bent forward to support the front plate and projections on the ends of the arms to retain the front plate in proper position. i

ltl. An electric meter comprising a shaft, bearings there for, an electric motor whose armature is carried by the member of conducting material carried by, the shaft, and means for registering the rotation of the metenshaft, comprising a dial having frontand back plates, a dial train mounted between them, said back plate being'formed from a shect-metal punching having integral arms bent backward, a bearing for the drive shaft of the dial train in one of said arms, and a shaft supported. by said .arms geared to the meter shaft and to said drive shaft.

20. In an electric measuring instrument, a bearing for a vertical shaft, consisting of a sheet-metal punching having a lengthwise slot for a supporting screw and an integral end portion bent substantially at right angles. to the body portion and provided with an opening for the end of; the meter shaft.

21. In a measuring instrument, a step bearing for a vertical shaft, comprising a tubular member partially closed at its ends, two jewels therein, and a coiled spring within saidmember between the two jewels to hold them normally at the ends of the tubular member, said tubular member being reversible whereby either jewel may be put in service.

:52. In an electric measuring instrument, a lower bearing for a vertical shaft, consisting of a sl1eet-metal punching having two integral portions bent substantially at right angles to the body portion, one of which has'an opening therein. a member supported between said integral portions, and a jewel bearing block carried by said member in alinemeut with said opening in the bent portion of the punching.

23;. In an electric meter, a supporting member, projections struck up therefrom, a shaft, a bearing therefor consistiug ot' a sheet-metal punching having :1 slot therein I vertically adjustable between said projections and a screw extending through said slot and into the supporting mem her to secure the hearing in any adjusted position.

22-1. in an electric measuring instrument, a lower hear ing for a vertical shaft consisting of a sheet-metal puncl1- iu'" ha ring iwo integral portions bent substantially at r ght angles to the body portion, one of said bent portions having an opening through which said shaft extends; and a jewel step bearing supported upon the other bent portion.

in witness whereof I have hereunto set my, hand this 18th day of November 1904.

CHARLES HOLM S. Witnesses:

.loux A. Mcllaxns, Jr., UL'tLtLl) .llcK. MeKiLnor. 

